The present invention generally relates to the field of information handling systems, and particularly to automatic source selection in information handling systems.
It is often desirable to connect a plurality of input sources to a single receiving device. For example, an information handling system may be connected to one or more video input devices for displaying a video signal received from the video input device on a display connected to the information handling system. Typical video input devices may include, for example, a videocassette recorder (VCR), a television (TV) tuner, a satellite video receiver, a digital versatile disc (DVD) player, a laser disc player, or a cable television (CATV) receiver. Typically, while the information handling system may be selected to receive video from a first source, such as a television, a user may desire to switch operation to a second video input source by turning on an alternate video device or by inserting an appropriate storage medium into an alternate video device. It would be highly desirable for the information handling system to automatically detect such action by the user, or a similar event, and automatically switch selection of the video input device to the new video input device without further user intervention.
The present invention is directed to a method for automatically selecting an input device from a plurality of input devices coupled to an information handling system via a plurality of inputs, each corresponding to one of the plurality of input devices. In one embodiment, the method includes steps for scanning the plurality of inputs for the presence of a signal provided by one of the plurality of input devices, determining whether a signal is present on one of the plurality of inputs provided by a corresponding one of the plurality of input devices by detecting the signal, and in the event a signal is detected on one of the plurality of inputs, selecting the one of the plurality of inputs on which a signal is present such that the information handling system receives the input signal provided by the corresponding one of the plurality of input devices.
The present invention is additionally directed to, in an information handling system, apparatus for automatically selecting an input device from a plurality of input devices coupled to an information handling system via a plurality of inputs, each corresponding to one of the plurality of input devices. In one embodiment, the apparatus includes a processor for executing a program of instructions on the information handling system, a memory coupled to the processor for storing the program of instructions executed by the processor, a selector coupled to the information handling system for selectively coupling any one of the plurality of input devices to the information handling system by selecting any one of the corresponding plurality of inputs, and a detector coupled to the selector for detecting a signal present on the selected one of the corresponding plurality of inputs such that the selector is capable of selecting the selected one of the corresponding plurality of inputs on which the detected signal is present.
It is to be understood that both the forgoing general description and the following detailed description are exemplary and explanatory only and are not restrictive of the invention as claimed. The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and constitute a part of the specification, illustrate an embodiment of the invention and together with the general description, serve to explain the principles of the invention.